First Architecture and History Book Presented. Gifts from Rare Books from St. Petersburg Publishers

On 9 June, 2003, the Hermitage Theater hosted a press conference of Director Mikhail B. Piotrovsky who presented G.V. Mikhaylov’s book Winter Palaces of Peter I: Architecture and Decorations, Events and People and the Russian version of the magazine The Hermitage and told journalists about the present condition of the Greater Hermitage Project.

The book by the St. Petersburg architect G.V. Mikhaylov, winner of the National Award of the Russian Federation, describes the history of the three Winter Palaces of Peter I from 1708 to the 1730s. "G.V. Mikhaylov’s book recapitulates the many years of research made by his colleagues and predecessors, dedicated to the construction of the first palaces in St. Petersburg," says Mikhail B. Piotrovsky in the foreword. Containing 224 pages, the book includes over two hundred full-color and black-and-white illustrations, some of which reproduce for the first time the author’s reconstructions, chronological lists, a vocabulary of architectural terms, resume in English and appendices.
The appendices include articles about the history of the Winter Palaces by Ye.M. Bazhenova, V.Yu. Matveyev, Yu.M. Denisov, N.V. Kalyazina and G.V. Dluzhnevskaya, and an in memoriam article by G.V. Vilinbakhov commemorating Ye.M. Bazhenova.
The book also contains unique materials from the Archive of Photographs of the Institute of History of Material Culture, Russian Academy of Sciences.
Under the new Architecture and History Program, the Hermitage together with the School of Philology of the St. Petersburg University will publish in 2003 the books Palace Embankment in the First Half of the 18th Century and Constantine Palace in Strelna.

The Russian version of the new magazine The Hermitage was also presented at the press conference. This semiannual will be published in both Russian and English. Editor-in-chief will be Mikhail B. Piotrovsky, Director of the State Hermitage Museum, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Executive Editor, Geraldine Norman. The Russian version will be edited by Yu.Z. Kantor, Assistant Director of the State Hermitage Museum; Issue Editor will be Ye.O. Getmanskaya of the Press Service. The publication is sponsored by Energy Standard Group S.A.
Coinciding with the 300th anniversary of St. Petersburg, the first issue of The Hermitage focuses on the city’s founder. In the section Key Themes, Nina Tarasova describes the memorial collection of Peter the Great, while Yelena Moiseyenko presents the Emperor’s wardrobe. The material about drawings of Hempton Court Garden and British Royal Residences tells about a recent discovery made by the Hermitage researchers. The section Archeological Finds describes the excavation of a Scythian barrow in Tuva in 2001. Modern art is addressed in an article analyzing the opinions of the Russian avant-garde guru Timur Novikov.
The magazine presents Clubs of the Hermitage Friends in St. Petersburg, The Netherlands, New York and Canada and the Hermitage Development Foundation in London; offers a calendar of events and a list of the Hermitage exhibitions in Russia and abroad; and gives information on the Hermitage souvenir shops.
The closing section My Hermitage will contain impressions of world-famous figures in culture and arts about the museum.

The Director told journalists about the new stage in the Greater Hermitage Project, including the restoration and reconstruction of the General Staff’s eastern wing, which are the project’s key element. The building will be turned into a center for culture and education which alongside exhibitions will house entertainment and commercial attractions for citizens and guests of St. Petersburg. The project is being prepared by Studio 44 of St. Petersburg and Rem Kolhaas.

Winter Palaces of Peter I
The book
by G.V. Mikhaylov
Larger view

Director of the museum presenting the new magazine The Hermitage

Executive Editor of the new magazine, Geraldine Norman

Rare Book from
St. Petersburg Publishers presenting their gifts

Queen of Spades
Alexander Pushkin
Designed by Valery Mishin
Larger view

Tale of the Fisherman and the Fish
Alexander Pushkin
Designed by Boris Zabirokhin
Larger view

The Greater Hermitage Project presented
Larger view